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Methods of Magic
The Methods of Magic, written by Sergo Valtim, is a hefty compendium detailing and analyzing the various methodologies of delivering magic throughout the known world. The following excerpts are actually from a follow-up manual written by bookseller Eddard Mercantus entitled, Methods of Magic: For Laymen. While scholars often rebuke this hackneyed and watered-down synopsis of Valtim's exhaustive study, the book was an undeniable success and the proceeds helped fund the Losstonian's political career. The Elves Components: Verbal and Semantic Elven magic is the result of what they refer to as imana, a magical force that resides in all living things. Elven mages are able to tap into these spirit energies for the purposes of protection and restoration. Rarely do they use these forces for destruction or warfare, and some believe their manner of magic manipulation prevents them from doing so. Elven magic is more ambient in nature--having as much to do with their surroundings as with their own expertise. When an Elven mage casts a spell, he uses wooden runes and traces arcane symbols in the dirt to shape the imana into its desire effect. When the ritual is complete, these symbols glow brightly for a moment and quickly dissipate when the imana is released. Valusia & Kos Components: Verbal, Semantic, and a Magically attuned item (A wizard staff, a spell tome, etc.) Traditional Human magic is considered a science and its greatest secrets remain well kept by wizard enclaves or colleges for good reason. The Arcane Science can be dangerous indeed and has limitless potential for both creation and destruction. Such power is also not easy to control without years and years of study. For that reason, most accomplished mages tend to be middle aged and their masters elderly and grey. Arcane magic is first and foremost a study of elemental control requiring complex gesturing, ritual incantation, and the application of mystical components. Though truly wizened mages may learn to forgo some of these aspects, most spells are doomed to failure if not performed precisely. For this reason, mages are never far removed from their thick ritual tomes and spend countless hours studying and perfecting their craft. Khajiit Components: Semantic only For the feline race far to the South, magical studies fall more inline with Elven perspective and is deeply spiritually based. Though Khajiit do not believe in imana per se, they believe that elemental spirits lie within all objects, living or inanimate. In their culture, these spirits are more important than even themselves and they work very hard to protect them from harm. For this reason, other forms of magic are scorned and only their spiritually based form known as Spellweaving is ever taught. To the uninitiated, a seer performing a Spellweaving ritual appears to be dancing without music. These complex movements, in their eyes, are representative of the elemental spirit they wish to invoke. Once completed, spirit energy springs from their hands with the caster's final motion. Being a seer is a destined path, never a chosen one, and so they are highly respected within the community and rarely set foot outside of their homeland. Dragon Isles Undiscovered The Orcs Components: Verbal and a Magically attuned item (a totem, a charm stone, etc.) Magic is rarely something one thinks about when discussing orcs, and for good reason. Orc magic is hardly commonplace and its effects are not always noticeable, but every Orc tribe has at least one Shaman. As a sort of a cross between Faith and Magic, Shaman are capable of base level Arcane magic used to inspire fear and incite savagery. Some exceptional Shaman have found ways to deliver more directly damaging effects through the use of magically imbued totems and sacrificial rituals. The Dwarves Components: Artificing is not a practical means of using magic. Alchemical components are only used during device or potion creation. Using an alchemical creation only requires the delivery of the device (consuming a potion, hurling a flask, etc.) The general perception about the relationship between Dwarves and magic is that there is none. While there are many reasons to believe this is true, Dwarven magic does exist in the forms of Artificing and Alchemy. The first is a method of imbuing objects with magical properties, though is not well documented. Suffice to say, as a race typically concerned with war, the typical application of Artificing is to yield greater combat efficiency. While Alchemy certainly has been liberally applied on the battlefield, there are also many restorative and constructive ways it can be used. To the true Alchemist, the pursuit of balance is of utmost importance and completing an alchemical recipe is an exacting science. Once a recipe is finished, the resulting potion or device is easily deployed by anyone with sense to toss a vial and run.